Yuntong Ma

Anisodus tanguticus is an important Tibetan medicinal plant. The tropane alkaloids (TAs), such as hyoscyamine, anisodamine, and scopolamine, exhibit significant analgesic and sedative pharmacological activities, making this species a valuable natural source for extracting these bioactive compounds. However, the chemical composition of A. tanguticus is highly complex. It includes a large number of compounds without elucidated structures, rendering systematic identification and structural characterization of its active constituents particularly important. Although high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) has been widely used for the separation of extracts from this plant, many unknown components remain challenging to accurately identify, even with spectral database matching. This study established an analytical method based on high-performance liquid chromatography coupled with triple quadrupole mass spectrometry (HPLC-QQQ-MS) for the determination of tropane alkaloids in A. tanguticus. The method encompasses a series of systematic procedures, including standardized sample preparation, mass spectrometric parameter configuration, LC pre-equilibration, method establishment, acquisition of MS data, multistage mass spectrometry (MSⁿ) scanning, and manual data interpretation. Using this strategy, we successfully identified three representative tropane alkaloids in A. tanguticus: hyoscyamine, anisodamine, and scopolamine. Additionally, it validates the precision of the established HPLC-QQQ-MS method, confirming that the method is rapid, sensitive, feasible, and accurate for the quantitative determination of tropane alkaloids (TAs) in A. tanguticus. The established approach demonstrates good versatility and reliability, and is suitable for the high-throughput identification and quantification of tropane alkaloids in A. tanguticus and other medicinal plants.

The medicinal plant Coptis chinensis is highly susceptible to root rot caused predominantly by Fusarium spp., threatening yield and medicinal quality. Biological control agents (BCAs) from the genus Bacillus are promising, yet their host mechanisms remain incompletely defined. We evaluated a four-strain Bacillus consortium as BCAs in field-grown C. chinensis and profiled host roots using transcriptomics and metabolomics. Pre-inoculation with the BCA mixture resulted in a modest, albeit statistically non-significant, reduction in disease index following Fusarium solani challenge. Multi-omics analyses showed that BCA treatment reprogrammed genes and metabolites associated with amino acid metabolism, accompanied by increased glutamine (Gln) accumulation. Supplementing culture medium with exogenous Gln inhibited F. solani growth in a concentration-dependent manner in vitro. Notably, F. solani or BCAs alone elicited modest regulation of canonical defense genes, whereas BCA pre-inoculation followed by F. solani robustly up-regulated defense modules across MAPK signaling, plant–pathogen interaction, and hormone signaling (JA, ET, SA), consistent with molecular immune priming. These results suggest that the BCA consortium induces resistance- and priming-related molecular markers in C. chinensis by modulating amino acid metabolism and host immunity. These findings provide a mechanistic basis for the potential application of BCAs in the sustainable management of C. chinensis root rot.

Based on morphological and plastid data, Coptis wawushanensis (Ranunculaceae), a new species from Hongya, Sichuan, China, is described and illustrated. Phylogenetic analyses (Maximum likelihood and Bayesian inference) recover C. wawushanensis as sister to C. huanjiangensis with strong support, and place them in a well-supported clade including C. deltoidea and C. omeiensis . Morphologically, the new species most closely resembles C. omeiensis , but differs by an ovate leaf blade (vs. lanceolate to narrowly ovate), a central leaf segment 1.5–2.5× as long as the lateral segments (vs. 3–3.5×), shorter scapes (5–8 cm vs. 15–27 cm), and well-developed stolons (vs. absent). It is further distinguished from its sister species C. huanjiangensis by leaf blade shape (ovate vs. ovate-triangular), shorter scapes (5–8 cm vs. 20–32 cm), and the presence of stolons (vs. absent). An identification key to the new species and its closest relatives is provided, and its distribution and habitat are documented.

Plant extracellular vesicles (EVs), hold significant therapeutic potential due to their roles in intercellular communication and cross-kingdom regulation,

Anisodus tanguticus, a plateau-dwelling medicinal plant endemic to high-altitude regions, synthesizes pharmaceutically critical tropane alkaloids but faces escalating threats from climate warming. While its unique thermal adaptation mechanisms remain enigmatic, heat shock transcription factors (HSFs) are hypothesized to orchestrate stress resilience in this species. Here, we present a genome-wide evolutionary and functional dissection of the HSF gene family in A. tanguticus, identifying 20 HSF members (AntHSFs) with distinct structural and regulatory features. Phylogenetic reconstruction classified AntHSFs into three canonical subfamilies, revealing lineage-specific diversification patterns shaped by tandem and segmental duplication events. Conserved motif architectures and DNA-binding domains underscored functional divergence, while synteny analysis highlighted evolutionary constraints and adaptive innovations compared to model species. The transcript dynamics analysis under heat treatment revealed the dynamic changes in enzyme activity and gene expression of the MDA, GSTT, GSTF, and Cu/ZnSOD genes under different heat-treated times. The AntHSF gene exhibited stage-specific expression patterns consistent with antioxidant enzyme activity, indicating that the AntHSF family plays a critical role in coordinating the antioxidant gene response through temporal regulation networks. Notably, evolutionary analysis and sub-cellular localization revealed that AntHSF7 and AntHSF9 were potentially linked to plateau-specific adaptation. This study deciphers the evolutionary drivers and functional specialization of HSF genes in A. tanguticus, providing mechanistic insights into its thermal resilience and a genetic roadmap for conserving and improving this climate-vulnerable medicinal species.

The gradual increase in ultraviolet B (UVB) health hazards to human skin, coupled with the irritation associated with existing sunscreen products, underscores the critical need for the development of natural sunscreens to combat UVB-induced photoaging. Chuanxiong oil (CXO) and hyaluronic acid (HA) possess excellent antioxidant and anti-apoptotic properties, which are closely linked to the mechanisms of photoaging. In this study, a composite nano-system (HA-CXO-Lip) comprising chuanxiong oil (CXO) and hyaluronic acid (HA) was initially fabricated. Subsequently, both in vitro HaCaT cell models and in vivo murine photoaging models were established to systematically evaluate the therapeutic efficacy and mechanistic actions of HA-CXO-Lip against photoaging under controlled experimental conditions. The investigation encompassed comprehensive assessments of its pharmacological effects and underlying molecular mechanisms through multimodal experimental approaches. Vitro experiments showed HA-CXO-Lip significantly reduced intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels and senescence-associated β-galactosidase (SA-β-Gal) activity. Furthermore, HA-CXO-Lip restored the levels of antioxidant enzymes, including superoxide dismutase (SOD), glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px), catalase (CAT), and hydroxyproline (HYP), while also decreasing the levels of lipid metabolites such as 4-hydroxynonenal (4-HNE) and malondialdehyde (MDA). These findings indicate that HA-CXO-Lip effectively inhibits excessive oxidative stress. Additionally, HA-CXO-Lip inhibited apoptosis by reducing Bax levels and enhancing Bcl-2 expression in HaCaT cells. In vivo studies demonstrated that HA-CXO-Lip significantly reduced UVB irradiation-induced erythema and epidermal thickening in the backs of mice. It restored the orderly arrangement of collagen fibers and inhibited the activation of the core senescence pathway, AKT/mTOR, along with the downstream expression of matrix metalloproteinase 9 (MMP9), resulting in a decrease in collagen I disassembly. Additionally, HA-CXO-Lip was shown to significantly decrease the number of apoptotic cells, as indicated by the expression of the apoptosis marker cleaved cysteine aspartic protease-3 (C-Caspase-3) and the surface type I transmembrane glycoprotein (CD44), thereby further inhibiting apoptosis. The findings of this study suggest that HA-CXO-Lip can exert anti-photoaging effects through its antioxidant and anti-apoptotic properties, highlighting the synergistic efficacy of CXO and HA, which holds promise for the prevention and treatment of photoaging.

The fruit of Phyllanthus emblica L. (FEPE) has a long history of use in Asian folk medicine. The main bioactive compounds in FEPE are polyphenols, known for their potent antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and hypolipidemic activities. The present study aimed to investigate the intervention effect of FEPE (100 and 200 mg/kg) on hyperlipidemia for 8 weeks and preliminarily explored the potential mechanism by microbiome-metabolome analysis. The results showed that a high-dose FEPE (200 mg/kg) effectively alleviated dyslipidaemic symptoms and body weight gain in hyperlipidemic mice induced by a high-fat diet (HFD). Microbiome analysis showed that FEPE altered the structure of the intestinal microbiota, which included an increase in specific probiotics (such as Akkermansia, Anaerovorax, and Bacteroides) and a decrease in harmful bacteria (including A2, Acetitomaculum, Candidatus_Arthromitus, Lachnospiraceae_NK4A136_group, Lachnospiraceae_NK4B4_group, Rikenella, and Streptococcus), as well as a reduction in the level of short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs). In addition, significant changes in the hepatic metabolome were observed, and eight key metabolites associated with betaine metabolism, lysine degradation, methionine metabolism, and fatty acid metabolism pathways were primarily filtered. The correlated analysis identified several key “microbiota-metabolite” axes in the treatment of hyperlipidemia by FEPE extract. In conclusion, the present study is expected to provide a basis for treating hyperlipidemia with FEPE from the perspective of the microbiome-liver metabolome axis.